


Crown of Thorns

by Rubien



Category: Overwatch (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Supernatural Elements, Alternate Universe - Supernatural Hunters, Alternate Universe - Vampire, Blind Soldier: 76 | Jack Morrison, Fae & Fairies, Father-Daughter Relationship, M/M, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Panic Attacks, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Self-Hatred, Suicidal Thoughts, Vampires, Werewolves
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-03-19
Updated: 2017-09-01
Packaged: 2018-10-07 22:56:26
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 12,993
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10371636
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rubien/pseuds/Rubien
Summary: “Wait, wait!”Jack started. He wasn't used to people being able to sneak up on him. He had great hearing and usually, could hear anyone or anything approaching him from behind even without a hunter potion. He turned around to look in the direction of the other man's face.“Why are you following me?”





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> My amazing friend Mary who is also my beta, convinced me to write this fanfic. I could not have done this without her.  
> I really hope you guys will enjoy this fanfiction and maybe find even some original ideas here. That being said, I took some inspiration from "Mercy Thompson" book series and a fanfic with vampires I've read a long time ago and I already forgot the title (sorry, if you ever think you know which one let me know so I can mention it!)  
> Note also that I am gonna add more tags which will also be warnings.  
> Enjoy guys, kudos and comments are very welcome <3

Jack breathed out heavily, his breath easily visible in the winter weather, even in the darkness of the night. Honestly, he couldn't wait for the summer to come. He wasn't particularly fond of summer but it would be better than this cold which made his right knee and the joints on his left hand hurt even though he was wearing leather but warm gloves and thick pants. Reminder of his youth, when the bones had been broken in fights and he had been too stupid to let it heal properly.

He also didn't like the snow the graveyard had been covered with. He was trained well enough for his footsteps to be almost unhearable but the same couldn't be said about his companion.

“So, this is it, Jack?” Hana had asked him looking from behind his shoulder.

Just as him, she was wearing the standard gear – the same pants as Jack, black jacket with an Overwatch badge on the chest and an armor underneath. Unlike Jack though, she was also wearing a helmet.

Jack nodded and then look over the shoulder on the young woman. “Didn't I tell you to address me as 'sir?'”

Hana grinned. “You did, Jack.”

Jack grunted, seemingly annoyed by Hana's disrespect. He got Hana, or D.Va how she was called on the internet, under his wing only a year and few months ago. She was assigned to him by the leadership after her previous mentor had died before.

Jack had read the report about the attack before he and Hana met, and initially, he was delicate with her. She reminded him of Fareeha and how broken she had been at Hana’s age.

Too young, Jack thought. He swore the new members of Overwatch were getting younger and younger each year and while Hana's results had been the best he had seen in years (maybe even better than Jack's own), he still thought she was too young to be in the front lines already.

Well, at least he could keep an eye on her this way. She had great skills but she was a bit overconfident, which he reminded her a lot of, and loved the action a bit too much.

“I still don't get why some vampires are going to graveyards,” Hana murmured, sounding rather boring. “It's worse than the cliché with them going to balls and wearing that horrible high collars.”

“Hana,” Jack grunted, annoyed.

“What?” She looked at him, looking rather offended.

“We need to focus. This isn't a game.”

Hana rolled her eyes which annoyed Jack even more.

“Hana...” Jack growled.

“Okay, okay, sir,” Hana sighed sarcastically and her features hardened a bit as she finally started to focus.

Together, they walked closer to the crypt. This wasn't the only cemetery in the town and there were other units looking for the group of feral vampires but this graveyard was in the center of all the recent attacks they had checked on the map.

Jack scowled when he remembered how important it was to catch the vampires as soon as possible. For Overwatch.

Jack gritted his teeth when he stepped on a rock under the snow and sharp pain went through his knee. Angela, his very good friend and occasional medical adviser of Overwatch, often told him that he should go and take some pills or let her get some herbs from the ocean that would help him but Jack didn't want to. He refused to be dependent on anything or anyone, let alone pills. Every time he was injured and was forced to stay in the medical bed, resting with daily dose of pills, he felt like he was being controlled by it.

Together, they walked past several rows of the graves and headed to the crypt. Jack had been given the keys from it by his supervisor. When they were in front of the heavy, iron door, Jack gave Hana a look. She understood immediately and pulled out a gun from the holster on her thigh. Unlike Jack who had a big rifle that fit well into his much bigger hands.

Hana didn't like it of course and when she had first seen his weapon, she had kept on asking him why she couldn't get a better weapon as well when her previous mentor allowed her a shotgun. Jack had tried to explain to her that there was still a huge gap between his and her skills, and only when he would be sure that she could handle it, he was going to give her a better weapon.

They both had UV bullets ready in their magazines and were pretty much ready for anything. Hana knew to stay behind Jack, to stay safe, and Jack, with the gun in his hand, unlocked the crypt.

Jack gritted his teeth again as they entered. They space there was cold and unforgiving and the feeling of death lingering in the air. It was unpleasant to be there, even psychically, because it was even colder in there and his knee hurt even more.

The crypt was big enough to have stairs leading down which were clear to see from where Jack and Hana were standing. Hana's helmet provided her with night-vision. Jack didn't have helmet but he could still see thanks to his red, tactical visor. Ever since the incident two years ago, he was mostly blind. He certainly couldn't see as a normal human being but thanks to Angela, he had a different kind of sight.

It was hard to describe, and Jack had honestly no idea how the spell Angela had put on him actually worked. He could never tell a person by their face but he could recognize people approaching and he had good hearing, so he could usually recognize people by either their shapes or their voices. When Hana had asked him how exactly he saw, the closest thing to reality was probably that the whole world was on red fire for him.

Slowly, they passed the four graves on each side of the entrance of the crypt and went deeper inside to the stairs.

They both had drank potions to enhance their senses before they had gotten on the cemetery and now they were focusing on the sounds.

Right now, Jack couldn't hear anything but that could change any second. And he would never admit it, but it was rather reassuring to hear footsteps behind him. He hadn't had the same feeling ever since his partner, Ana, had died several years ago.

He knew that it shouldn't be comforting, having such a young woman – almost a child – behind him because it meant the moment he would die, she could very much be soon to follow.

The stairs were tight and small and Jack almost had to look down to where he was going. It was even colder there and he had to walk carefully. They still only knew that the group of feral vampires was from three to six members.

He could see stone pillars in the crypt, a lot of humidity in the air and he could smell the mildew along with the death, and when he grazed them, he touched and felt the damp under his gloves. He supposed no one really visited the crypt anymore. He thought about the door upstairs being unlocked but that didn't mean much. He'd seen the lock and it wasn't in the best shape, anyone could easily pick-lock it and then lock it again so it would seem like nothing was wrong over here.

Jack held up his hand with his palm open. Hana immediately understood and stopped in he tracks.

Jack put down his rifle, letting it hang on his side, and reached into his pocket for a small bottle. There was blood in it and without any special spells, he just threw it on the ground. The sound of breaking glass rang out through the space of the crypt. Both Hana and Jack stopped breathing for a moment.

Then, there was an unpleasant, screechy noise of a stone moving against a stone and one of the tombs moved. The cover moved to the side and Jack heard even more unpleasant sound of nails scratching against the stone surface of the tomb. And then, there was even more sounds but when the first vampire showed, Jack was ready. He only took short look on the vampire.

Jack never truly understood why but feral vampires were different from the normal ones, let alone the trueborn vampires. Feral ones were, to put it simply ugly. They usually didn't have hair, their eyes were black, their ears pointy and unlike the trueborn vampires, their sucking teeth were the four incisors, while the truborn had the canines.

They usually manged to look normal but only for a certain amount of time, then the ferals had to go back to their lair and hide. What made ferals ferals was the lack of self-control. The relationship between humans and vampires and other creatures was very fragile and every murder done by vampires was often on all the news.

This one was shorter than Jack, skinny and slow for a vampire so Jack had no troubles shooting him with a bullet.

It let out a shriek sound and fell on the ground, squirming and screaming in pain. It wasn't dead yet but Jack would end its life quick after he was done with the rest of them.

The companions of this feral climbed out of their tombs too. There were three more and Jack handled two more and let Hana shot one of them, through the heart, and looked very pleased with herself.

“Good job,” Jack said when he was sure no more vampires would be coming here. All of the vampires they had shot was screaming or squirming in pain. It would take to remove the bullet to save their lives but they were not human creatures anymore. Overwatch along with the Council of High Vampires had agreed to deal with ferals permanently.

“Stay in the back,” he ordered Hana who was still beaming at the compliment she had gotten from him. So much that she even nodded and stayed there, in relative safety.

Jack let his rifle hang on his side again and took out the machete from the holster on his thigh. He went to the bodies, careful and watching out for any dangerous movements and then one by one, he chopped their heads and watched them turn into ashes.

Then, he took pictures and called his supervisor to let him know his and Hana’s hunt had been successful. He needed to write a report too but that could wait. He took one, quick glance at Hana, just to make sure she was okay and found her staring at the ashes with so neutral expression it had to be fake.

She still didn’t like killing, Jack thought. But he was sure that she would understand it was necessary sooner or later. Hell, maybe she already knew but knowing things and learn how to deal with them were two separate things.

But Jack knew she was strong.

Hana put the gun into her holster and watched Jack do his things.

“Why are we doing this, Jack?” Hana asked, sounding a bit bored as Jack was taking picture with his cell phone.

“We need to have the evidence to back-up our reports,” Jack said automatically. Hana didn’t need to know he hated the procedure.

After the call to his supervisors, he and Hana left the crypt, locked it and Jack let the keys hidden under a rock, just like he said he would do and then they headed out for Jack’s car. Hana called it old wreckage, he called it reliable and secure vehicle.

Jack put his rifle and machete in the trunk and then climbed into the passenger seat. Hana already had her phone in her hands and the helmet was in her lap.

Jack had to tell her twice before she put down the phone and started the engine.

* * *

 Since Hana was his apprentice, she lived with him. They lived in a small house with small garden but in a nice part of the town with easy access to all important stores. When they arrived, Jack let Hana go in first and take some time for herself while he was getting the things from the trunk.

When he got in and put the stuff in the garage along with his and Hana’s bodysuit and armor, he asked her if she was going to order some food. When she said no because there was still some leftovers in the fridge, Jack secured the house.

He put the salt to the entrances, made sure everything was locked and then went to take a long shower and headed to his bedroom that was next to Hana’s. She was listening to some of her favorite bands and Jack could hear it softly through the walls. He didn’t like the band but since he was tired and he wanted to go to bed to warm his limbs (and joints) anyway, he didn’t to tell her to turn the volume down.

He didn’t like silence and soft music helped him sleep but it couldn’t be too loud. That wouldn’t be safe.

Jack fell into a short, restless sleep like many nights before. He dreamt of screams, blood and guts, and being poked with a knife that occasionally broke the skin. He didn’t used to have nightmares like this but they came back several years ago. Since then, an all-night sleep without nightmares was only a special event for him.

He woke up in an hour and half sweating and gasping for breath. He could still hear the music in the next room so he looked at the clock. It was two in the morning.

Jack got up and walked to the bathroom to wash his face and then gently knocked on Hana’s door. When he didn’t get an answer, he quietly opened the door.

Whilst his room was simple – one bed, one nightstand and one cabinet with few pictures on it and that was all – Hana’s room was full of pink, desk with stereo on it, posters on the walls, clothes on the floor, and bed with colorful sheets. A bed on which Hana has fallen asleep. Jack smiled slightly and walked to Hana to take the laptop she had in her lap, and put it on the desk. Then, he turned off the stereo, knowing that it would only wake her up later, turned off the lights and walked downstairs.

His joints still ache and he was feeling tired but he knew he wouldn’t be able to sleep right now. Instead he went downstairs, turned on the desktop and started to write a report for today. This way his insomniac episodes would be at least good for something. This desktop was another thing Overwatch had paid for – while he could make out the shapes of things, his sight couldn’t really see the screen of the desktop, and because he still needed to write his reports, it had been designed for blind people. Just like his phone.

Jack was halfway through when he became thirsty. He walked into the kitchen to pour a glass of water. Driven by his sudden need for coffee he opened the cupboard and search for a bag. When he finally found it, he frowned because it was too light. He didn’t have to see it fully to understand that it was empty and that he (again) forgot to buy new one.

He cursed under his breath, put the sack into trash and then leaned against the counter. He was in desperate want for coffee but he also knew he needed to work on that report.

After a minute, he sighed, wrote short note to Hana to let her know where he was and then went up to grab some clothes. Then, he went to the door, grabbing a small package of salt, along with his glasses and white cane.

He locked the front door right after he walked through them and made a line of salt at least in front of them. It was a habit from his childhood when his own mentor told him this would keep the ghost away, just like cold steel would keep fae away.

He also felt a lot safer with his gun hidden under his jacket as he walked through the night. There weren’t any suspicious sounds and his walk was mostly uneventful. Only few blocks away, there was a café, the only one in the city that was opened 24/7 and not only that, but they had also the best coffee Jack had ever tasted.

Even if he couldn’t see, he probably knew the path there by memory. He was going there for years, ever since he and his friends discovered that place. If he remembered it correctly, it was a big building right next to a cosmetic shop with see through windows that allowed the customers to look out on the street, comfortable seat boxes that were soft on touch and everything was in the colors of brown and beige. Jack still found the place very comforting.

He entered, the door ringing slightly. Besides him, there was only a couple in one of the boxes, holding their hands and staring on each other, and a guy sitting in the corner, reading a book.

Jack walked to the barista, enjoying the smell of fresh coffee and vanilla that was always lingering in the air here.

“Oh, hey!” the barista greeted him. He didn’t know what her name was but he remembered her voice. She was always working the nightshifts and had always been nice to him. “How are you tonight?”

“Pretty good,” Jack said with a small smile.

“The same as usually?” the girl asked.

“Yes, please,” Jack nodded.

“Okay!” the girl always sounded so enthusiastic all the time. “You can go sit down if you want. I will bring it to you.”

Jack was grateful that she didn’t ask him if he needs any help like she did when she’d started to work here. He didn't have any troubles to find a box in the corner from which he could see the rest of the café and outside. He liked to have all entrances in his sight.

Jack sat down and patiently waited for his coffee to arrive – black, no cream, no sugar. He enjoyed the soft music playing, the nice smell and his fingers soon started to play with the paper of local news on the table. He watched how the barista first went to the man who was reading with a mug, they talked for a bit in quiet voices, she laughed and then went back to her station to prepare coffee for Jack.

When the barista arrived, she brought a small trace with a mug of his coffee. He was about to reach for it when he noticed the mug wasn't the only thing there, and the smell of something nice and sweet hit his nose.

“Um, what is this?” he asked, holding up a dessert plate.

He could hear the smile on the barista's lips when she answered: “That's the courtesy of the gentleman sitting at the window.”

Jack felt heat in his cheeks, feeling humiliated. He wasn't exactly updated on his looks but he knew he wasn't exactly handsome. He had two scars on his face, white hair, he was blind and looked too old. He didn't have any illusions about his attractiveness, or lack thereof, so he couldn't get this because the man was interested. Those days were over.

He let his humiliation quickly transform into anger. He raised to his feet, grabbed the plate with whatever was on it and made his way to the man sitting next to the window.

When he let his cane hit the box the man was sitting on, he coughed.

He could see the man move. Jack had no idea what he looked like but he could tell that the man had muscular, broad shoulders and he supposed he was also at least as tall as Jack was given how he filled the box when he straightened up in his seat.

“Yes?” he asked in deep hot voice that sent shivers down Jack's spine but not in the bad way. There was also a familiar ring to it and even though Jack could tell person by their voices almost every time, he could not quiet place this one.

“What is this?” Jack asked, ignoring the feeling of familiarity.

There was a moment of silence between them, presumably because the stranger was looking at the plate.

“That seems to be a raspberry cheesecake,” the guy said almost neutrally but with a hint of cheekiness in his voice.

Jack felt his ears turning red in his humiliation. “And why exactly did you buy it to me?”

Another moment of silence. “To be honest, you looked like you've been having some rough day. And people don't exactly go to a café at this time when they are all happy and can sleep.”

“Is that why you're here?” Jack asked in mean, biting voice. “Because you are not happy? Maybe instead of sitting around in a café you should go and do something rather than finding a fucking charity case to work on.”

Jack let the plate hit the desk with loud noise, turned on his heel and walked to his table, grabbed his coat and went to the barista to pay, leaving his coffee behind. He'd lost his appetite.

After he walked out of the café, he grunted as the cold wind hit his body. He could feel slight pain in his knee again. He hid his hand into his pocket, trying to keep at least this joints in warmth. He walked with fast pace, just wanting to be finally home.

“Wait, wait!”

Jack started. He wasn't used to people being able to sneak up on him. He had great hearing and usually, could hear anyone or anything approaching him from behind even without a hunter potion. He turned around to look in the direction of the other man's face.

“Why are you following me?” Jack grunted but on instinct decided not to stop walking, hoping that the guy would just leave him be. He didn't to be out in the cold for too long.

“I really meant nothing with the cheesecake, you know. You just looked kind of sad and-”

“Fuck off!” Jack slid his hand to his gun and felt slightly safer. He was still watching the man with the corner of his eye, and quickened his pace. “You are really creepy now.”

“I was just trying to make your fucking shitty day better!”

Now, this guy sounded angry even though he was the one who basically started all of this.

“Why?” Jack spat. “I don't know you and you don't know me!”

“Are you sure about that, Mr. Morrison?”

Jack didn't stop but he did hold the gun tighter in his hand. His name was all over the news several years ago after a terrible accident when he lost not only his sight but also things that were much more important to him. Now, most of the fuss was over , but Jack knew there were still people hating him in the world.

He looked at the man and his posture, considering if he was going to attack Jack. And then...

“I mean I know life in Overwatch can be a bit harsh, especially for an ex-commander, right, amigo?”

“Were you following me on purpose?” Jack growled, his voice defensive and full of anger.

The man made sarcastic sound: “Aw. You really think you are that important? Nah, Morrison. I just saw your sad puppy face and decided to buy you some maldito cheesecake.”

“What do you know about being in Overwatch?” Jack asked, his voice biting.

“I just told you, old man, didn't I?” the man said, annoyed. “I know Overwatch inside out, amigo.”

“Who are you?” Jack asked, now careful. If he knew the name, maybe he would know what his deal was.

He could hear the cocky smile in his voice when he said: “Gabe.”

Jack's lips formed a tight line. This was not helping him at all.

“This is your home, right, Morrison?”

Until now, Jack held it together, this was only one man after all, but realizing he led him right in front of his house, made him really worried for the first time. This was his and Hana's home. He had to keep it safe and since he didn't know this man or what he was after, he was worried. It made him think about a night many, many years ago, the smell of sweetness, nice female voice turning into shrieking laughter that still haunted him in his dreams, and pain in his stomach. So much pain.

“Well, it was interesting to meet you, Morrison,” the man interrupted his thoughts.

Jack realized that he spaced out and cursed himself innerly. There was a stranger standing right next to him, potentially dangerous stranger. He could not let himself space out like that.

“If I ever see you here again, you will regret it!” Jack hissed threateningly.

The man, 'Gabe,' only laughed and then just turned on his heel and walked away.

Jack watched his back until the man disappeared behind the corner of the street, then, still with quickly beating heart, he went back into his house. He was surprised to find the light in the kitchen on. Hana was there, finally changed into her nightdress, and eating ice-cream. Her posture was relaxed and she was leaning against the counter. She had to be smiling brightly.

“What are you doing up?” Jack asked as he hang up his coat on the coat-stand.

“I woke up and went for a little snack and then I saw you standing outside with that hottie,” she was grinning happily. “Who is he?”

Jack didn't answer. Instead, he asked. “What did he look like?”

He wanted to go through the Overwatch system and find some information about that guy but he couldn't find much if he only knew that he was 'Gabe.'

By Hana's posture, she was widely grinning again. “He was slightly taller than you, darker skin, longer dark brown hair, circle beard, big nose and very, very handsome face. What a catch, Jack.”

Jack only waved his hand, trying to look nonchalant. He didn't want to make Hana worry much. “You should go to bed.”

“Okay!” she sounded way too happy about it, put the ice-cream back to the freezer and headed back upstairs.

Jack finished protection of the house and then went into his bedroom. He spent the night looking out of the window, thinking about his own demons and remembering the past, the present and the future.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi!  
> I want to thank my friend Mary once again for being my beta but all errors and mistakes are my own.  
> Also please note that I added the tag 'Panic Attack' so read with caution.  
> Anyway, I really hope that you will love this chapter. Kudos and comments are very appreciated <3

“You look absolutely horrible, Jack,” Hana said immediately after Jack walked into the kitchen next morning. They were taking rounds every morning on preparing breakfast ant this morning it was Hana's turn (thank God).

At first, Jack had been unsure if he would be able to go downstairs in the morning wearing his usual boxers and undershirt but as soon as he found out that Hana simply didn't care.

Jack sat down on the chair and reached for the toast with jam Hana prepared for him.

“Sooo,” Hana said, noticeably smiling again. “Are you gonna talk about that handsome stranger you somehow managed to seduce somehow yesterday?”

Jack didn't stop chewing even when he gave her a bored look.

“Oh, come on, Jack!” Hana complained loudly. “It's not like you to bring such a hottie in front of our house. Is it serious between you two?”

She was right, it was not like him to do something so stupid.

“Hana,” he growled in a voice that made clear he didn't want to talk about it anymore. “Eat something, we need to be at HQ soon.”

Jack was pretty sure Hana rolled her eyes but complied, sitting down next to him and pouring herself a big glass of orange juice. They ate their breakfast mostly in silence. Jack was still mostly thinking about the stranger from yesterday. He had to find out who he was. He didn't want any potentially dangerous people know where he and most importantly Hana, lived.

“You know,” Hana said after a while with soft edge at her voice that let Jack know she wanted something from him. “Yesterday, when I talked to Lucio, he said that since it's Friday, we could go out tonight.”

“Where is that?”

Hana hesitated and Jack knew he wouldn’t like her answer. “It’s in the club on the other side of the town.”

Jack nodded as a sigh that he heard, then drank the rest of his juice and put the glass on the table before he answered: “Out of question.”

“ _Shibal_!” Hana cursed in Korean, then pulled her chair closer to Jack. “Please! I haven’t been out with anyone since I got here and I can’t live without experience!”

“Wasn’t the killing vampires yesterday enough of an experience?” Jack asked with one eyebrows raised and bored voice.

He could practically feel Hana rolling her eyes. “But that doesn’t count! It’s not like I can go and talk about killing vampires and other adventures of being a hunter on my YouTube channel, can I? I just want to go out tonight and have fun in the club! I’m a normal, teenage girl and-“

“Is killing vampires truly definition of ‘normal?’” Jack asked, trying to keep his smile hidden.

Hana blew up her cheeks. “This is not fair! I’m a young woman! I need a social life.”

“We’ll see how you do today, then I’ll tell you if you can or can’t go,” Jack said in the end.

“Yay!” Hana threw her hands in the air in victory, then stuffed the rest of her toast into her mouth and without much chewing, swallowed. “Okay! I’m gonna go upstairs to dress up.”

Jack didn’t comment and completed his breakfast in peace before finally going up to get dressed as well. Unlike Hana, who enjoyed putting up some make-up and making herself pretty, Jack simply put on jeans, t-shirt and a jacket and then went down to wait for Hana.

She came down soon enough wearing stylish high waisted jeans in boots, a white blouse and pink cropped sweater.

Jack patiently waited for her to put on the coat and then they left the house together. Hana climbed into the driver seat. Sometimes, Jack envied her that she could still see like a normal human being because it allowed her to have the driving license. Not that he complained and in case of emergency he probably could drive but he would never recognize the colors on the traffic lights, but now if he wanted to go somewhere, he could only take a cab or a us or just take a walk.

At least it looked like Hana enjoyed driving.

It didn’t take them too long to get into the Overwatch HQ which was located in the center of the city. There was a small park in the center and the building around it were all mostly for the officials. The HQ was right between the police station and city hall. Of course, the small shops and restaurants were close as well, including Starbucks, which Hana seemed to love the most. But because she was still only apprentice, Jack was in charge of all the money. Even though Jack was giving her enough money to buy almost everything she wanted or needed, she always missed money for her coffee and always went to Jack to beg him to lend her some more.

Hana drove into the underground parking lot and left the car in place that was Jack’s. They climbed out of the car and walked to the elevator in silence. The first floor was mostly the reception where people could report suspicious activity they thought was cause of vampires, werewolves, fae or ghosts. Most of the reports were false, just people overreacting. Once they’d gotten a case from police they had believed was an attack of werewolf during which the victim died but it had turned out that it had been someone trying to mimic it.

That was the thing Overwatch dealt with every day. That, and a lot of people saying they weren’t doing the job done very well.

Jack tried not to think about it. After all, he wasn’t in command of this HQ anymore so the public should not interest him much anymore.

The next floors of the building were mostly hunters, each with their own cubicles. The air was always somehow stuffy and Jack wished the windows could be open. The highest floor belonged to the head of the HQ.

Jack didn’t meet him often, the man usually just sent down his assistant if he needed anything specific from him. Jack was also forbidden from officially working on highly public cases. Which was why he would not be listen as the one who solved the case of the feral vampires from yesterday.

If Jack was being honest, he didn’t mind not being in the public eye anymore. What he minded was the humiliation of being degraded and how some people in the HQ were looking at him.

_Failure._

Jack and Hana walked out of the elevator on the third floor. They usually didn’t talk to anyone – or at least Jack didn’t. Hana was sweet, sociable girl, and she had won the hearts of everyone in the HQ, including Jack. Not that he would tell her.

“Hi, Hanzo!” Hana’s voice pulled him from his thoughts and he realized that the other hunter was passing by them.

“Hello,” Hanzo answered politely.

“Hey, I’ve heard you have a new boyfriend! Congratulation!” Hana said enthusiastically.

Most of people could tell another person’s thoughts or feelings by the expressions on their face, Jack learned to recognize their body language. Hanzo immediately looked down, away from Hana. He also didn’t answer but rather ran away.

Jack couldn’t help himself and asked: “So, who is this man that makes the famous Shimada shy?”

Hana laughed, then whispered: “Promise you won’t tell anyone. It’s a secret Lucio told me.”

“I promise I won’t tell anyone who would spread it more,” Jack said. And to be honest, he didn’t even have anyone to tell it to. Ever since Reinhardt and Torbjörn retired, he hadn’t talked to them for several years, ever since Ana’d died.

Hana leaned closer to him and whispered: “He’s dating a werewolf.”

Jack almost stopped in his tracks to look in the direction of Hana’s face. He half expected her to start laugh and then tell him she was joking but no such thing happened.

It was… hard to believe to say at least. He didn’t know Hanzo for so long, he had begun to work in this HQ only two years ago, but so far Jack thought about him that he was a serious guy that was fond of his job, and that he placed the work before his personal life. To think that at a time like this, when Overwatch was being hated as much as it was, he got himself a werewolf boyfriend, was almost unbelievable.

Well, Jack only hoped that he knew what he was doing and was happy.

Jack’s and Hana’s cubicles were right next to Hanzo’s and his apprentice’s – Lucio’s.

It was almost weird how Hanzo, such serious man, got an apprentice like Lucio. Just looking at him made Jack feel like tired, old man (or well… more than he was already feeling) because of all the energy the young man had.

At first, Jack didn’t think the young boy had the heart to be a hunter. He thought Lucio was too kind and too _happy_ to be a hunter. But from what Hana told Jack and from what he had heard from the others, the young man proved that he had the guts and the wits to be one of them. In few months, he would stop being Hanzo’s apprentice and would be his partner instead until he’d be old enough to have his own apprentice.

Few hours of each day Hana spent with other apprentices learning with another hunter about individual beasts. The rest of the time, Hana spent with Jack working on cases. Jack usually worked on the paperwork while Hana had a class, or had been going through the details of a case, and when Hana returned, together they headed into the city to investigate.

When Jack had been given this case, it surprised him. A file laid on his desk with private message from his boss. The note, as Hana told him, read: “Don’t overthink this, write it down as an accident.”

There had been a murder, which was not usual. A lot of beats killed humans for different reasons – some ate humans, some drained their energy and some just lost control. This particular case concerned werewolves. But – and there was a big but in this case – werewolves weren’t the culprits, they were the victims.

There were three werewolf packs in the city. Packs usually had from twenty to fifty members and one alpha who was in the charge of the pack. The alpha was usually the one hunters from Overwatch usually spoke with and if there was suspicion that one of his wolves was the culprit, they spoke to the individual wolf.

In this case, even though Jack had been frankly told not to think about the case too much, he decided to look into it properly. He had never been one for the prejudice and he was not going to let a potential murder of two werewolves from one of the packs, slide.

As soon as Hana came back, the two of them headed back to the garage to head to the alpha of the smaller pack whose territory was the North District of the town. Their numbers were lesser than the other two packs but their territory was bigger. From what Jack had read about the case, it was because the alpha of the North District was more dominant than most of alphas.

Jack didn’t understand completely what dominate behavior was in the sense of the pack (he was no werewolf after all) but he understood that the more dominant the wolf, the higher position in the pack and if there were two mates, their shared the position of the more dominant partner.

“Hey, Jack,” Hana said out of the sudden, pulling Jack away from his thoughts.

“Yeah?”

“Why do you think some fae like to… like children?” Hana asked.

Jack felt cold sweat running down his back for a moment before he pulled himself together. He really hated this. He thought he got out of it decades ago and then the fear returned when Ana had died. It felt ridiculous to him since the way Ana had died was nothing like what had happened to him.

“We don’t know,” Jack said, relieved to find out that his voice sounded natural. “Some people think it’s because kids are vulnerable, some say it’s because their flesh is still young. And some say that kids have unique connection to the Otherworld and are somehow closer to it then the adults.”

Hana didn’t answer but Jack knew she heard him.

They continued their way in silence. It was hard to accept that they were some creatures out there that were out specifically for children. But such was the life now.

Jack still remembered the time when the fae and the other creatures were kept a secret. No one believed him when he said he was kidnapped when he played in the corn field with his dog. His parents just told him to stop lying and then his father beat the hell out of him after the police officers left.

The alpha of the North district lived in a big house with no neighbors, on the edge of the town with nothing but a wood behind the house. Jack supposed it was a good place to live if he had a pack of wolves to care for. This way, they were away from people and could go hunt in the forest during the full moon without almost any chance of running into people.

Just as Jack expected, the house of the alpha was big even though in the records Jack had read that the alpha was without family – Jack didn’t understand the bonds inside of the packs much but he knew werewolves often sought each other’s company, especially the alpha’s.

“Park over there,” Jack said to Hana and pointed at the park spot a bit further away from the house but it was close enough for the werewolves’ senses to notice their presence. Fortunately, they were being expected.

“Maybe you should stay in the car,” Jack offered her.

She gave him a look and Jack grinned. “Yeah, didn’t think you would.”

They climbed out of the car and walked to the car. It was silent there and the only sounds were made by their steps and the small river under the bridge they drove over to this side. There were exactly three houses, the alpha’s and two abandoned. Or at least they looked like that but Jack was pretty sure they belonged to the alpha.

He guessed the man was rich.

It started to rain and the light rain drops felt cold as the wind blew them into Jack’s face. They opened the small gate in the stance and, upon finding out there was no ring, they knocked on the door three times.

One of the wolves opened the door for them, being polite just enough to let them knock before opening the door immediately.

“Well, well, look who’s here,” she said with little smirk on her lips. “Hi, Jack.”

The old man felt a questioning gaze as Hana looked at him but fortunately, didn’t ask him (yet). He tried to keep calm as he said: “Hello, Sombra.”

He and Sombra had a history to put it simply. He didn’t tell anyone about her condition and she provided him a lot of information some time ago.

“Well, don’t stand in the door,” Sombra said, turning on her heel. “The boss is already waiting for you in the living room. On the right.”

She went in the opposite direction and waved to the right.

Even though the house looked nicely decorated, it was very simply inside with no unnecessary or too expensive furniture. Still, even the inside was kept in nice, clean condition, and Jack smelled the freshener in the air, the nice smell of freshly cut grass.

Jack didn’t see any wolves, except for Sombra, but that didn’t mean they were not present in the house. With Hana behind his back, he went through the hall to the living room. Even here, most of the furniture was modest. The alpha was sitting on the couch, alone. He had a cigar between his fingers and there were two cups and a kettle on the coffee table between the big couch, the chairs and the TV on the TV stand.

“Howdy, partner!” the man rose to his feet to greet them.

Jack politely shook his hand. “I’m Jack Morrison and this is my partner, Hana Song.”

“Jesse McCree, pleasure to meet you both,” the alpha smiled brightly.

He was not how alphas usually were. From Jack’s personal experience, the moment they talked to him, they rather forcefully tried to establish their dominance, and Jack usually let them because it was not wise to try to convince a dominant wolf – let alone alpha – that he was the boss.

This Jesse though acted rather relaxed.

“I honestly expected only one of ya, so gimme a sec to bring one more cup,” Jesse offered but Hana quickly responded.

“It’s fine, Jack doesn’t drink tea.”

“Alrighty then, please sit down,” Jesse waved to the chairs and both Jack and Hana sat down. Jesse reached for the kettle and poured first Hana, then himself a cup of tea.

Jack had to admit it smelled nice, probably a white tea.

“I’m here to ask you about the two wolves from your pack that were found,” Jack said, figuring it would be best to talk straight.

“Whatcha wanna know?” Jesse’s tone grew more serious.

“I’m sorry if I’m being unsensitive, Mr. McCree,” Jack licked his lips and made sure not to look the alpha into the eyes; he had no intention to challenge him. “But it’s not easy to take one of wolves down. And I know your pack-bond can let you occasionally see the world through each other’s eyes. have any of your wolves… been there when it happened to Gérard or Liao?”

There was a moment of silence. “Well, we don’t know much about their deaths. We know both murders happened at night because their… loss woke us up through the bond. They both died in the middle of the night. Gérard died at 2:41 and Liao died 2:24. And you already know they died in the river.”

“Yes,” Jack said and because for a moment, he heard the loss in Jesse’s voice before the alpha managed to cover it, he added: “I’m very sorry for your loss, Mr. McCree.”

“Thank you, sir.”

The bodies were found in the same river and soon thanks to Jesse calling in that his wolf had just died. Unfortunately, they did not find the bodies in the river soon enough – first was found in the next morning near a playground already full of kids and the second, although found sooner, had been discovered by a group of teenagers.

The reaction of public had been not good, especially since both corpses had been in the wolf form and public had been furious. The kids discovering it probably still had nightmares about the monster with sharp teeth and claws almost as big as their arms.

Jack continued in careful voice. “You did not mention if you… felt something else before it happened.”

“No,” Jesse shook his head. “Nothing, sir.”

A clear lie. But Jack expected this. It was a little secret that if there was a murder of a werewolf, or vampire or a fae, they usually dealt with it alone, their own way. He couldn’t really blame them because Overwatch, too busy with its public image, would not give them much justice.

And Jack knew better than to try to force Jesse into saying something he didn’t want to say.

They talked about half an hour. Jack heard the front door opening and closing and people coming in and outside, most likely the pack members.

After it was clear Jack would not get more information, he told Jesse that that would be all and the alpha walked them to the door.

When they were inside their car and the werewolves couldn’t hear them, Hana started to hum.

“What is it?” Jack asked.

“What?” Hana said innocently and continued to be smiling like a sunshine.

“Why are you so happy?”

He really wished he could see the grin on her face, when she answered. “You called me a partner in there.”

“I did,” Jack admitted, trying not to smile stupidly.

“Does it mean you can’t order me around anymore?”

“Nope, it doesn’t.”

“You are horrible!” Hana hissed but there was also happiness behind her voice.

Hana started the car and drove away from the alpha’s house.

“Soooo,” Hana broke the silence after they drove across the bridge. “Can I go with Lucio out tonight?”

Jack thought about it for a bit. He could feel Hana’s eyes turning to him every few seconds as she was waiting for the answer.

“You are gonna be home at 1,” Jack said finally in grumpy voice. They were lucky it was Friday and unless they would be called in, they didn’t need to wake up early.

“Yay!”

“Focus on driving!” 

* * *

 

When they got home, Hana went to take a shower and prepare for a night out. Jack only managed to feed her with something he quickly cooked and then she took the car and had been gone.

And there was no sound of radio being too loud, or the TV on or Hana laugh as she forced Jack to ‘watch’ one of her soap operas just to laugh at the stupidity of it. The house was too quiet once more, the memories of laughter lingering there but leaving behind only sadness, melancholy and emptiness of being alone. Jack really missed Ana. And Reinhardt and Torbjörn.

Jack’s phone vibrated. He reached into his pocket, pulled it out and ordered it to read the message, and at least for few seconds, he the awful silence of the house was filled with Hana’s kind, girly voice: “I forgot to tell you, Jack, but you should definitely go out tonight and have some fun! You’ve been alone for too long. You need to socialize. Love ya, Jackie!”

_“What’s your name, boy?”_

_“J-jack…”_

_“That’s a nice name you’ve got there, Jackie! Do you think you can close your eyes for a bit, Jackie?”_

_Blood. So much blood and a tray with half-eaten body._

Jack had to lean on the counter and for a moment just breath in and out slowly until his heart and mind calmed down a bit. When he was sure he would not puke into the sink, he angrily grabbed the dishtowels and threw them on the floor, then hit the counter, hard. His hand immediately started throbbing and the spice jars shook.

Why was he not getting better?!

For a moment, Jack thought about calling Angela. Then, he decided to just go out. He grabbed his coat and headed to his favorite café. It was Friday night so there would not be as many people but that also meant it would not be so quiet.

On his way there, he felt incredibly tired like he had just ran several miles without a stop. He honestly needed a coffee.

It was as full as he thought it would be. It wasn’t too much since it was already evening and some people rather spent their evenings elsewhere.

The barista was not his favorite but Jack guessed it didn’t matter who brought him his coffee. He ordered the same coffee as always and then headed into the corner box but it was already occupied.

“Well, hello there!” said familiar voice that Jack did not wanted to hear ever again.

Jack looked up and to his utter shock and terror, in his seat was the same man who followed him yesterday to his house and made him scared for Hana's and his life.

The old man narrowed his eyes, trying not to look as upset as he was feeling. "What are you doing here?"

The man, Gabe, put on a dirty smirk. "What? Is it illegal now to go to a café?"

Jack didn't believe him. He narrowed his eyes even more, not saying anything.

He heard Gabe sigh and then say: "I actually returned to the city only recently and since I was looking for a place to go yesterday evening, it was just an accident."

He was getting on Jack's nerves with the relaxed and nonchalant tone.

"What do you want from me, Gabe?" he asked in irked voice.

For a moment, the other man didn't say anything. Then he waved to the seat opposite him. "Why don't you sit down for a bit, Mr. Morrison?"

Jack hesitated. He could leave but he had no idea what were the intentions of this man, or what he was capable of. He needed to know more but if he didn't talk to him right now, the only other option would be to have Hana go through the database at the HQ and look for all the 'Gabes' that ever worked for Overwatch. Which would take too long and they also didn't have to find anything about this guy. And also, he didn't want Hana to worry.

Slowly, he sat down next to him.

For a moment, they just looked at each other in the face. Or at least Gabe looked at him, Jack was staring at his head. There was heavy silence in the air and neither of them wanted to break it.

Eventually, the barista came to the table and put down Jack's order.

Jack could not hold it anymore.

"Well? What do you want?" Jack asked, trying to sound irritated rather than frustrated.

Gabe reached for his coffee which could not be more different from Jack's. It looked like some latté with a lot of milk and Jack had a feeling that also with a lot of sugar. And Jack just tried to be patient enough to let him sip that awful drink.

"Are you happy with how things are right now, Mr. Morrison?" Gabe asked him.

"What do you mean?" Jack asked, sounding even more irritated.

"I mean Overwatch, of course," Gabe said, sounding like it was obvious. It made Jack feel like an idiot.

When Jack didn't respond, Gabe continued to make him feel like even greater fool: "You've noticed, didn't you? The corruption and how they don't care no more."

"What do you know about Overwatch?" Jack didn't even bother with pretending the corruption in Overwatch was not present. The worst thing was that the current head of the HQ was more concerned about how Overwatch looked in the media, than he was concerned about them doing their job. The normal people they were not doing their job properly because there had been a lot of attacks recently. And the mythical creatures also thought they were corrupted because when one of them was in danger, Overwatch didn't really bothered with it.

"I worked there," said the man. "I told you, didn't I?"

"Anyone can say they worked there," Jack retorted coldly.

He could hear the smirk in Gabe's voice when he spoke again: "Can anyone also say that they can give you all the gruesome details about the Silver Mountain Massacre?"

Silver Mountain Massacre was one of the first big fuck-ups after mythical creatures and Overwatch became public knowledge. Jack had been 21 years at time it happened. Skinny boy who had been too quiet, too weird but already an apprentice. He remembered the news about Baba Yaga kidnapping, murdering, cooking and then eating 9 children before she had been caught and put down.

'Who Will Protect Our Children?!' Had been the headlines on the newspapers for several weeks and Jack had to go to Ana immediately for her to calm him down a bit and help him with a panic attack.

The thing is that even though it was a highly-medialized case, the details about the Baba Yaga's lair, how it looked like and the condition of the remains was still secret. Jack had only been able to get to the information when he was the Commander, and it still grossed him out. No one wanted to know the children didn't die fast and they were cooked alive, slowly.

"What can you tell me?" Jack asked, his hand reaching for his mug but not to drink. He was too nervous to be able to.

"Are you sure you want to hear all the details again?" Gabe smirked. "I mean I don't mind... but given your history with children-eating creatures, one would think you would be hesitant."

It was like he didn't control his body for a moment. He didn't even notice he raised to his feet until he had done it and looked in Gabe's direction. His heart beat like crazy, there was a fog in front of his eyes and ringing in his ears. He could not breathe properly.

How could this ‘Gabe’ know this?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I take the translation mostly from google translator so if you see any mistakes, let me know.  
>  **Korean**  
>  _Shibal_ \- Fuck


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! so I finally found some time to write and post this chapter. I really hope you like it and please leave comments and kudos! Thank you so much for everything.  
> Also notice I added a new tag "Suicidal Thoughts." Read careful.  
> Anyway I hope you enjoy!

It had been a long time since Jack was so shaken that he would lose total control over himself and his hands would shake. Panic attacks had not been that unusual for him since Ana died but usually, Jack somehow managed to push them away until he would alone and safe and not in front of other people. He felt humiliated by them.

Of course, this was not usual situation. Jack could count the people whom he had told about his encounter with Lady Midday and whom believed him on the fingers of one hand, and he would still have few fingers to spare.

Ana. Angela. And his mother, who had been dead for several years. Only they knew.

Later, when he thought about this experience, he realized that he actually was kind of lucky. Gabe could have laughed at him, could lean closer into his personal space, or do something else that would definitely not help Jack’s current situation. Instead, Gabe just patiently watched him as if he waited for the panic attack to be over.

When Jack somehow regained control and was sure his voice would not tremble (or at least not as much) he asked: “How the hell do you know about it?”  

“I told you, didn’t I?” there was a strange tone in his voice that Jack could not place but it sounded a bit like mixture of impatience but also the kindness people usually showed him because he was blind. “I was a part of Overwatch.”  

Jack thought about it. The man lacked the strange edge old people usually had but Jack himself was not a young, let alone child, anymore. And he was pretty sure the man, the hunter, who saved him had long been dead and because at the time Overwatch was still kept a secret, there had been no records of killed beasts or victims, Jack had never found the man who saved his life.

The only logical explanation was that Gabe had been his apprentice at that time.  

“Okay,” Jack said slowly and sat back down, trying not to gulp nervously. “So, you have worked for Overwatch. You made that clear. Now what do you want from  _ me _ ?”  

Another moment of silence. Jack started to have feeling that was usual thing with this man now.

“Oh,” Gabe said eventually, again with the mocking tone in his voice. “You actually thought I wanted something from you?”  

“Stop playing games,” Jack growled dangerously.  

“I’m not playing any games,” again, the irritating, mocking tone in his voice. “I just saw familiar face and I was feeling a bit nostalgic. Meaning I remember how five years ago you've been degraded and trashed at the TV like a little scapegoat for both Overwatch and the media."

For a moment, Jack wasn't saying anything. He still didn't trust this man but if he really used to work for Overwatch before all the mythical creatures went public, he truly might have been feeling nostalgic.

"You know, Mr. Morrison, not every person you run into has to have ulterior motive," Gabe said. Why did he always sound so fucking mocking? Thanks to him, Jack felt like an 

idiot the whole conversation.

"Well, forgive me for considering a stranger that buys me a cheesecake for no reason a creep," Jack retorted.  

Now, he was pretty sure there was a smirk on Gabe's face. "Speaking of which, do you want some?" he asked. 

"No!" Jack snapped angrily.  

"Would you believe me if I said that I truly apologize for my previous behavior?" Gabe asked.

"No."  

"Okay, I think we kind of start off on the wrong foot here," Gabe sighed. "My name is Gabriel Reyes, I used to work for Overwatch for a few years but now I'm working as sort of representative for a prospering company, and I recently returned to town. And, I honestly have no problem with you,  _ cabroñ _ ."

Probably for the first time since this conversation started, the man didn't sound mocking at all. Jack also tried to remember if during his whole career he ever heard about a man called Gabriel Reyes but he could not remember anyone of that name.

"Now," Gabriel continued. "I actually really regret that our first meeting went so badly, especially ‘cause I think I’m actually one of the few people that believe that you didn’t deserve all the blame you’ve been getting.”  

Jack hesitated. “Thank you," he said, careful. He still didn't trust this man.  

"Now, as a form of an apology, should I buy you a cheesecake?"  

Jack didn't say anything. Instead, he just reached for his, now cold mug, and took a sip. He grimaced. The heat of his coffee gone and the taste felt almost chilling in his stomach. 

Gabriel must have noticed because without a warning, he stood up and walked to the barista. As he passed Jack, he smelled the other man – coffee, the smell of new books and nice, expensive shaving cream.

The smell was pleasant and Jack almost wished Gabriel wasn't such an asshole. Hana also said that he looked quite nice but if there was one thing Jack learned since he became blind and even before that, it was that looks didn't matter. Handsome man could still be horrible person, and a woman with beautiful smile could actually be a children-eating beast.   

Yet, Jack caught himself thinking about what Gabriel looked like, what Hana told him. Handsome, long blistering brown hair that fell to his broad shoulders and powerful muscular arms that could easily push Jack down. And, that nice, deep voice. Jack found himself wanting. The last time he had a lover was before Ana died. His bed was now empty and cold and full of nightmares. He imagined how it would feel, to have hot fingers and palms on his hips, to feel the warm tongue on his.

He was tired of being alone.

He quickly stopped himself from getting carried too far. He didn't know this man. He could still be a potential danger, more so if he was a former hunter. But... maybe he was speaking the truth. Jack himself knew that the old-school hunters like himself had been gone now. Now, most people just wanted opportunity to kill monsters, to prove themselves heroes, or just wanted the violence. Back in his day, and it still happened nowadays sometimes, people joined Overwatch either because it ran in their family or because some creature attacked them or their family. The thing with that was sometimes the hunters became... numb or broken.

If you gaze long into an abyss, the abyss will gaze back into you, that kind of shit.

Jack looked at Gabriel as the man brought him a tray with new mug of coffee and a small plate with cheesecake.  

"Really?" he asked Gabriel with dry tone.

"Really," Gabriel said, amusement or mocking in his voice.  

Jack thought about it for only a moment. Then looked around. There was still enough of people to help him if he'd end up being drugged but not too many. Which was ironically a good thing, because the bigger the crowd, the lesser chance someone would help if they see something bad happening. It was just how mob mentality worked.  

In the end, Jack reached for the coffee. Yes, he loved it much more when it was still hot. It didn’t taste like Gabriel added something in there but just because he couldn’t taste it didn’t mean it wasn’t there.  

"So, what was your region when you worked for Overwatch?" Jack asked, going after the chance to gain information about this man.  

"Oh, I've been to many places," Gabriel said. "In fact, for some time I have worked in Japan, some parts of Europe and Australia.”  

“Wow,” Jack only said. “That’s a lot of places. Where are you from?”  

“I’ve been born in L.A. but I really travelled too much to actually feel anywhere at home,” Gabriel said, still sipping his own coffee.  

“Were you traveling for hunts?” Jack asked straightforwardly.  

“Yes.”  

And because Jack started to feel like it was his turn to say something about yourself, he said: “I grew up on a farm in Iowa. With my mentor, we traveled for some time but we never left the States and when I could, I just got stationed here. Sometimes, they sent me out for some special case. I’ve never traveled much, though.”

“You should,” Gabriel told him with strange, wistful voice. “I mean no place is perfect and even this city is beautiful in its own way. Every single place is special.”  

He made it sound so perfect.

“Never thought about settling down?” Jack asked curiously. He knew logically that Gabriel was not flirting with him, but his voice felt seductive to his ears, like promises of lovers in the middle of the night with the moon coloring their naked bodies.

And Jack had never felt as lonely and as longing as in that moment.  

“No,” Gabriel said without skipping a beat. “Retirement is just not for me. And I don't think I would be able to live in one place even if I tried." There was a pause. "You?"  

Jack did think about it. Even thought it could be nice. But dreams and reality were sometimes two completely different things. It was a nice fantasy but Jack knew he could never just sit on his ass when there was work to be done. There would always be evil in the world and injustice. And while there was nothing wrong with living a happy life without feeling responsible for the lives of others, Jack was not one of those people.  

"No," Jack shook his head. "Not for me."  

Gabriel chuckled knowingly, sipping his coffee again. "You should try to get out of the States. Maybe that would make you reconsider, Jack."  

"Don't call me Jack," the old man growled.  

"Okay, Jack," Gabriel purred, amusement clear in his voice. 

The old man only rolled his eyes and cut a small piece of his cheesecake, then tasted it. This time, it was with strawberry flavor and Jack's palate was having a good time. Despite always having a bit of a sweet tooth, Jack never really tried any cakes in this café. But that was because he never really felt like eating something anymore. He ate only when he had to.  

"Is it good?" Gabriel asked, his voice somehow amused but there was also something Jack could not describe as anything else than a purr.  

And just because Jack felt like being a bit of a dick, he lied: "No," in a biting tone.  

However, given to how brightly Gabriel chuckled, the lie didn’t slide. 

Jack only grunted, irritated, and then took another bite. If he could judge by this particular cake, it was no wonder that this café was so popular. Not only good coffee but also good desserts. 

“Why don’t  _ you _  get yourself a cheesecake?” Jack asked between two bites. 

Gabriel’s smile didn’t leave him. “I’m not much for cakes. In fact, my condition requires a very special diet.” 

“Still can drink latté though, can’t you?”

“Oh, well, latté is not something I could give up even if I wanted to.” 

“Can’t really blame you for that,” Jack chuckled, surprising even himself with the ease he was suddenly talking to the other man. Maybe it was the fact that his voice still sounded familiar, as someone he used to know, he used to  _ trust _  but he could not remember. Maybe it was because this man used to be a hunter himself. Maybe it was because after a long time, he was the first one who knew who he was and didn’t feel the need to tell him he was a horrible person, who deserved the worst for letting all the people who had depended on him die. 

“I must say you actually held yourself pretty well all those years ago,” Gabriel started with actual admiration in his voice.

The sweetness of the last bite turned bitter in Jack’s mouth at the memory, and he had to swallow it whole. He managed to say: “I don’t want to talk about that.” 

Jack didn’t know why he couldn’t let those memories go. Why he was still reminded of his mistakes every single day in his life now. He wished he could go back and made a lot of different decisions. He wished that he would be smarter. That he’d knew better. 

Telling himself that he could not change the past did not really help him. But at least, as he told himself often, he wasn’t doing as bad as he used to.

“Okay,” Gabriel said.

The other man clearly took the hint and didn’t want to start a conversation again. 

Jack quickly finished his coffee, then touched the watches on his wrist. He spent almost two hours here, talking to this man. “I’m gonna have to go.” 

“Of course,” Gabriel stood up at the same time, almost like a gentleman when a lady was leaving. It only made Jack feel even more ridiculous and irritated. And maybe, just maybe, a tiny bit shy. 

“It was nice to meet you,” Gabriel said in that voice that made Jack miss human physical contact. “I mean… really meet you, Jack. Do you come here often?” 

“Why are you asking?” Jack asked, slightly suspicious again. 

Gabriel grinned: "Would you believe me if I said that it's because I actually find you attractive?" 

"No," Jack retorted coldly, trying to ignore his rapidly beating heart and the heat he felt in his ears.

Gabriel laughed even more. Then, after Jack put on his jacket, he said: “Let’s just say that since I’m new to this city, I still don’t really know many people here. And it was nice to meet you. I’ll see you around, Jack.”

“Goodbye.” Jack said, pulling his jacket closer. It was snowing outside. He scowled at the beautiful, unique snowflakes whose presence was telling Jack that his joints would hurt at the way home. It was almost like a laugh in the face, that he could see the snowflakes in great detail thanks to the enchantment of his eyes but he could not recognize people by their faces.

He used to love the winter. Mostly because he hated summer in his younger years. Now, the season just made him hurt. In much painful ways than just his joints.

Before he fully realized it, he changed the direction and headed to the other side than his home was. He almost stopped and turned on his heel to head home but he continued. The streets were full of people, happy people in groups laughing and passing him. They didn’t mind a blind, lonely man.

Soon, Jack found himself walking through a city park. It was big enough and just behind it there was a huge gate with high wall. And behind the black, steel gate, inside those tall walls was a cemetery. It was not the same as the one where they had been hunting the feral vampires. He knew that if the vampires were settled in, he would be much more angry.

Jack knew that his hands were empty but he had been told not to bring flowers any more.

There was a beaten road in the snow among the graves, showing that Jack had not been the only one to bother to come here even in this horrible weather. He knew his path by memory, and could find the one grave he was looking for even without his white cane or the shades of the beaten path on the ground.

He finally reached the grave and just stood in front of it for a minute. He could not see the letters on it but he knew what they said.

It didn’t take long.

“Hello, Jack,” came voice from behind him. The familiar, soft voice that often reminded him of his mother.

He came here often. But that didn’t mean it was getting any easier.

“Hi, Ana.”

She moved without any sound but he could see her silhouette. Unlike normal people whom Jack usually saw like figures in flames, in colors of orange and red, Ana’s shape was blue and white. She didn’t have any feet, she just levitated in the air. Except for her voice, she didn’t make any noises.

“It’s good to see you, Jack,” Ana said, her voice kind and soft.

“Is it?”

Ana seemingly leaned against her grave and tilted her head to the side. “You are feeling guilty again.” It wasn’t a question.

Ever since Ana died, he was seeing her ghost. He knew she would always be here, at her grave. Jack also met her several times at the site of her death but Jack didn’t want to go there too much. On rare occasions, he would meet her outside those two places.

He still had in vivid memory the night he had drunken himself so much he spent half of the night crying pathetically, sobbing on the floor. Then, in the morning, he had reached for his gun and put the barrel in his mouth. It had tasted like gunpowder and iron but most importantly, it had tasted like freedom.

Then, Ana appeared in front of him. He didn’t know how but he had known it was her. She had put her hand on Jack’s gun and gently led it down. 

“I know it doesn’t look like it, I know you feel awful but it’s gonna be okay one day, Jack,” she had said. “It’s going to be okay,  _ habibi _ .”

Jack had only sobbed more and she tried to touch his cheek. She hadn’t really touched him but it still felt cold. The coldness, however, felt more calming than anything he had tried to comfort himself.

He had also seen her two more times, both of which he had been in deadly danger.

“I can’t really help it,” Jack shrugged. Technically, he should be doing a ritual on helping Ana to move on. That was what hunters, what Overwatch did.

“You shouldn’t feel guilty, Jack,” Ana said. “I already told you. What happened to me was not your fault.”

_ I led you there _ .

“Why won’t you go?” Jack asked for the first time since she died.

“Because you are not ready for me to go,” Ana told him patiently. “I can’t just leave you here alone. Everyone needs someone they can trust.”

Jack didn’t say anything. He kind of felt guilty for being the reason she was still here. But he also was not willing to help her go. He didn’t even know if he’d ever be.

“Have you find yourself someone?”

Jack lowered his gaze. He knew Ana didn’t mean a partner only in the boyfriend or girlfriend way. Ana knew him through and through, they were best friends and she was probably the only one who knew about his dirtiest secrets. Including that sometimes he needed let go a bit differently than other people.

“No,” he said.

Ana sighed and he felt a bit ashamed for disappointing her. But deep down he also knew that he deserved that feeling of discomfort and uneasiness that was deep inside his belly constantly. Maybe it was his self-destructing nature but no matter how much it made Ana disappointed or sad he could not chase that feeling away even though he knew how.

He felt Ana’s kind and worrying gaze on him. But Ana knew, always had, what she could change and what not. And she knew him.

“How is Fareeha?” she asked instead.

Jack had to smile at the memory of the young huntress back at the HQ. “She’s doing fine. You would be very proud of her.”

He knew Ana smiled. “I have always been proud of her.”

“That you were,” Jack said. Then, after a second of hesitation. “I miss you.”

“I know you do. If you weren’t you would not come here. Now, tell me about yourself. How are you doing?”

“I got a case with two murdered werewolves,” Jack confided to her. “Both of them died in wolf form, drowned in the river.”

“Oh, well,” Ana said almost smugly. “Any old hunter knew that’s the easiest way to get rid of a werewolf.” 

Werewolves in their wolf forms, just like chimpanzees, couldn’t swim very well. It was because they had too much muscle and not enough fat and the upper part of their body was much heavier than the lower part. Their center of gravity was completely different than in human form.

“I know,” Jack said grimly. “The thing is-“

“-that nowadays, they don’t teach them this technique,” Ana finished. “Do you think it could have been a hunter?”

“Well, normal people usually don’t know werewolves’ biggest weakness right next to silver,” Jack said. “But… it’s also possible it was not a human at all. I mean, I’m sure some old creatures know this as well.”

Ana didn’t say anything for a moment, then she tilted her head and spoke in strange voice: “This case won’t be easy for you Jack but it’s important. It’s going to start something new. Something  _ better _ .”

“What?” Jack asked. Sometimes, Ana would tell him something that would happen to him, something she saw in the  _ Beyond, _ like when she told him he would have a guest in his house. And then, several months afterwards, Hana had come into his life.

Unfortunately, ghosts often spoke in riddles. ‘Better’ could mean a lot of things. And there had still been a lot of days

“It’s going to be okay, Jack,” Ana said. She always said that but it never felt like that. Even though, everything did get better. She was beginning to disappear into thin air.

“And Jack… not everyone is out there to hurt you. Maybe it’s time for you to open up to someone new a little.”

And then she was gone as suddenly as she appeared there, leaving Jack there in pain and cold and confusion.

**Author's Note:**

> If you think I should add any tag, let me know ;)


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